Kinda new should

Kinda new to BP shooting and would like to know what most people here would use. Looking to deer hunt with a T/C PA Hunter and not sure what would be my best bullet. Currently shooting round balls with FFFG in 50cal. Will be in wooded area at around 50yd. THANKS (Apologies for my previous post about bullet type)

Practice with the roundballs and use them. Perfect for deer.

Dave

+1 on roundballs. Thats all you need for deer at the distance you mentioned. It's what I use.

You do your job and the RB will do theirs. You need nothing more for deer, especially at only 50y,

Deer are easy. You can kill an elk at your distance and caliber.

I agree with the others. A patched lead roundball is all that is needed for deer hunting.
The only time a elongated bullet beats a lead roundball is when we are talking about shooting at distances over 120 or 130 yards.

At that distance, the roundball will have lost a lot of its velocity. That causes the trajectory of the ball to be very curved with the ball falling rather rapidly. That makes it hard to know just how far above the deer's vital zone you need to aim before taking the shot.

At these long distances, the elongated bullet maintains its velocity better than the ball so the trajectory is flatter.

Like I said, out to 100 yards, the patched roundball will do everything that a bullet will do and it's a whole lot cheaper to buy.
Since it is cheaper, a shooter can practice a lot more without breaking the bank.

COTNTOP said:

Kinda new to BP shooting and would like to know what most people here would use. Looking to deer hunt with a T/C PA Hunter and not sure what would be my best bullet. Currently shooting round balls with FFFG in 50cal. Will be in wooded area at around 50yd. THANKS (Apologies for my previous post about bullet type)

Click to expand...

A patched round ball is exactly what the T/C PA Hunter was designed for; it has a 1/66 twist. I believe that at the time that T/C came out with that model the PA hunting regulations required the use of round ball for muzzle loader season deer hunting. Find an accurate load somewhere between 65-80 grains and you will be all set for your hunting situation.

If you want to get away from messing with the patches, Hornady makes a short, stubby, pre-lubed conical designed for the slow twist barrels like yours. They are legal in Pennsylvania, which was a round ball only state, & is why they are called the PA Conical. They are worth trying, IMHO.

Many thanks, you guys saved me a bunch of time in just research. Met an 83yr old gentleman several years ago that is absolutely nuts about muzzleloaders, Now I am a convert. Always shot centerfire, never took time for this sport. No telling where it will lead. THANKS

As they say; "once you go black, you'll never go back"!

I didn't shoot a muzzleloader until I was nearly 35 or 36 years old. Can't believe it took me that long to get around to it, especially considering how much I love bow hunting. Short range hunting and having to use woodsman's skills to get close, either still-hunting, stalking, or ambush, is far and away what I prefer.
Get ready for a lifelong new obsession. I haven't fired a CF rifle in about 3 years now, and it was 2 or 3 years before that instance. I simply find hunting with them to be lackluster these days. I do shoot my modern pistols often still, don't want to let that skill dry up.

This site is fabulous. Avoid trusting in "things you heard" and ask any questions you have here. There are many, many folks here that have incredible knowledge and experience with "traditional" shooting.

In well over half a century I've never hunted with anything other than a patched ball. I've had the opportunity to hunt and kill a LOT of deer and never needed more than just the one shot. I mostly used a couple of .45s but got many with several .50s, .54 and .62.

I agree with everyone that the round ball is the perfect choice.
The PA conicals are good bullets for a slow twist barrel, my second choice.

A second choice is never needed.